Sunday, May 15, 2011

What Would Jesus Drive?


This beautiful Mercedes Benz CL500 was parked 
in Austin, Texas -- on a parking stripe, basically taking up 2 spaces. The after-market black wheels and tires were sharp and expensive. The lone bumper sticker read: Jesus, I trust in You.

The CL500's retail price is about $90,000. That people can justify wealth accumulation with Christian faith is fascinating. To me, the phrase "wealthy Christian" is a contradiction in terms. What do wealthy Christians think when they read a passage like Matthew 19:24: "Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."? How can they miss one of Jesus's core messages: Love the poor? The New Testament makes it seem like Christians should be almost Socialist in their charity and service to the poor. And yet Christian Republicans are frequently those who most fiercely oppose social programs for the poor, citing the corresponding cost.